Tuesday, November 12, 2013

#TSBreakAway - 7 Shots of Klang

I may have been to all the Southeast Asian countries but I have yet to fully explore my homeland. Out of the 13 Malaysian states and 3 federal territories, I can't claim to have been to every inch. In fact, my exposures to the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia are lacking, and Kelantan remains a mysterious locale, the only state I have yet to come across with. For this reason alone, I was very happy to be selected as one of the Xplorers for #TSBreakAway.

I want to use 7 photos taken during my solo expedition to paint Klang's historic district. I am merely a "syok sendiri" photographer so don't expect National Geographic materials being showcased here. That being said, I do hope that these images will interest you to drop by and exxplore this town.

Klang Royal Town Mosque

The sight of a murky brown river is nothing unusual in Malaysia. However, for such a dirty river to be able to produce a striking reflection of the mosque somehow gives me hope that it is still possible for us to have clean rivers.

City Bridge

With so many new highways taking over, this steel and metal bridge, built in 1957, remains relevant today. While the upper tier was demolished in the 80s, the lower tier still widely in use by pedestrians and cyclists.

Graffiti on the wall

I stumbled upon this work of art while on my trail. The message is loud and clear on what the public wishes for this town. Hopefully, it will come true.

Deepavali was around the corner during my visit and the festive mood was definitely high along Jalan Tengku Kelana, also known as Klang's Little India. The whole street came alive, exploding both sight and sound with colourful sarees and garlands of flowers and vibrant beat of Hindustan music. It was crowded with people making final preparations before the Festival of Light, which was on that coming Saturday.

Garlands of flowers

The festive season

Henna

Indian auntie

However, not everyone is in joyous mood. I saw this Indian auntie sitting by the shoplots while I walked along Jalan Tengku Kelana. Even with Deepavali around the corner, she wasn't seem to be in festive mood.

Looking at all these pictures evoke back fond memories of my own trail as well as the one with the awesome bunch of new friends. In need of a new adventure soon.

Map Your Trail is the first half of the 3rd day of #TSBreakAway, a pilot program initiated by Tourism Selangor. Each Xplorers were required to plan their own explorations around Selangor. I chose to visit the royal town, Klang. This is also my entry for the CANON Photo-Storytelling Challenge.